The Body Out of Motion Exhibition Statement
The Body Out of Motion revolves around the inherent subversion in reverencing discarded abject anatomy. The sculptural process begins with an overt labor of love– a retranslation of harm. It chronicles the intersection between disability and queerness through semi-abstract depictions of the systems within the human body. I heavily reference —and in turn become part of-– the longstanding tradition of utilizing art as a means of protest within disability culture. Often drawing attention to the “Ugly Laws” —a historical discriminatory ableist practice in the US— and their lingering impact today, my sculptures are a discussion of the right to belong.
Intricate net-like forms adhere tactile pieces into one decisive whole. A net has the ability to both protect (i.e. safe-fall systems for aerial artists) and ensnare (i.e. fishing traps). Thus these interlaced shapes not only represent connection and safety, but simultaneously allude to being “trapped.” I portray my community as interwoven by delineating the synapses that affix us to one another. The forms tie back to both the body (i.e. blood vessel patterning) and the structures that exist on a microscopic level all around us. In this way I explore how ableism simultaneously ensnares disabled individuals and inherently connects us— and how the disabled community has transformed these circumstances into spaces full of care.
The prominence of metal functions as a cathartic act of reclamation. Metal for “the patient’ outside the confines of its functionality within hospitals as surgical instruments and surfaces for ill bodies. I intermingle soft textures and flesh with the hard planes and sharp edges. In a sense my body itself becomes one with the piece as I am forced to adapt to tools that were never intended to accommodate people like me. There’s a distinct materiality in the refusal to comply with able-normative expectations of what this body can do.